Therapeutic Nonsense
by BonesFan447
Summary: Teenagers Dana Scully and Temperance Brennan are forced - or, rather, persuaded - into therapy and end up sharing the same therapist. When they meet, as suggested by their therapist, they clash like oil and water - with seemingly nothing in common with the other - but soon become close friends. They may be two totally different people, but they have one thing in common: anger. (AU)
1. Fire and Ice

**It's been quite a while since I last published something, so hello again everyone! This is my first crossover fic and I'm really excited about it. I hope you all enjoy it! Just a heads up, I refer to the characters (TB & DS) by their last names throughout the fic, so don't be confused by that :)**

* * *

"Temperance Brennan?"

Her name was called by an all too perky receptionist. The woman's voice echoed in the nearly empty waiting room. A thin girl with long, brown hair, soft blue eyes, and sharp cheekbones dressed in faded blue jeans, a Guns N Roses t-shirt, and a leather jacket stood up. The girl turned to a woman who looked to be her parental guardian. She gave the girl a look that urged her on. she sighed and walked through the doorway. It was going on 5:30pm on a Wednesday and Temperance Brennan was stuck in therapy.

'What a life I lead,' she thought to herself as she walked into the depressing office of her new therapist.

* * *

"Dana, please."

"Oh, brother." A girl muttered under her breath. Hearing her name in an oh-so familiar tone of voice elicited an eye roll from this same girl. She was leaning back against the kitchen cabinets, looking extremely unmanned and displeased by the situation that was unfolding before her. The girl's name was Dana. Dana Katherine Scully. Dressed in black jeans ripped at the knees, an ill-fitting black tank top, and black combat boots. She had blazing red hair that was short and messy along with electric blue eyes that could slice you in half just by looking at them. Bracelets representing a wide variety of things covered her left arm in its entirety. One might wonder what they were hiding, or what stories they could tell. One such person was the girl's mother, Maggie Scully.

"I don't need therapy, mom! You and I both know that shit doesn't even work!"

"Watch your language, Dana, please." The girl rolled her eyes again.

"Dana, what happened to you? Where did my sweet little girl go? I don't even know you anymore! You aren't my child! You aren't my Dana! I need her back!" Her yelling echoed slightly in their kitchen. Why did all their fights take place there?

"How many times do I have to tell you?! I've changed! I won't always be your 'little girl,' you know. Therapy isn't going to solve all of my - oh, I'm sorry - _your_ problems, mom!"

"ENOUGH!" The sudden increase in volume startled Scully. She remained silent.

"I'm tired of arguing, Dana. Go to your room. Go... and calm yourself down. This discussion is over. You may return when you feel like you're back to normal."

"What definition of normal? Yours or mine?" Her mother was dead silent, stunned that Scully had said what she did.

Scully's reaction was cliche of others her age. It was the slam of a door. The sound made her mother cringe.

Maggie sat down on the couch and held her head in her hands.

"What am I going to do about that child?"

* * *

"Have a seat, Temperance." Brennan smiled forcibly and sat down on the stiff couch.

'For the amount they charge per session, you'd think they could at least get softer couches,' she thought to herself as she tried to get comfortable.

"I'm Dr. Park, it's a pleasure to meet you. Why don't you tell me a little bit about yourself before we begin?"

"Well, I'm 16 years old. I'm a sophomore at Mottsfeld High School. Um... I like Guns N Roses, forensic anthropology, and I love to read."

"That's wonderful, dear. Now, Temperance, tell me what's been happening. This is your second foster home, correct?" Brennan took a deep breath in and exhaled. She _hated_ talking about this.

"Yes, that's correct." She answered the question in a very monotonous voice.

"What happened at your first foster home?"

"I'd prefer not to discuss that." She bit her tongue. The subject of her first foster family was a bittersweet one. They were an older couple, in their late 50s to early 60s. Very kind and gentle to her. But she refused to talk about what happened to them.

"You need to talk to me, Temperance."

"Why? I didn't come here willingly. It wasn't my idea to be thrown into therapy."

"Well, you're here and you have to talk, so tell me about your first foster family."

"No." The two just looked at each other for a moment.

"Fine then. We'll talk about something else. How long have you been in the foster system?"

"A year."

"Why were you put into the system?"

"My brother basically left me for dead after out parents abandoned us." She had her arms crossed in her lap.

"What was your life like before entering the foster system?"

"I don't want to talk about that either."

"Why don't you?"

"I just don't, okay? Please respect that."

The room went silent. Brennan already regretted letting her foster mother talk her into this.

* * *

"Dana Scully?"

An extremely perky receptionist's voice rang out into the desolate waiting room. Scully stood up and walked toward the woman. Though it had been a day since their last argument, she and her mother were not on speaking terms. Subsequently, Scully was forced into therapy; and she was _not_ happy about it.

"Hello, Dana. I'm Dr. Park. It's nice to meet you." The woman smiled at Scully, but she didn't smile back.

"Why don't you tell me a little about yourself before we get started."

"I'm 16, I go to Mottsfeld High, I'm a sophomore, I like a lot of bands, I'm not very popular." Dr. Park hesitated to speak, sensing the awkwardness that filled the room.

"Alright! Well, let's just jump right in. What's causing you to lash out at your family?" Scully was silent.

"You have to talk to me, Dana. Answer my question please." She sighed before answering.

"She - my mother - assumes that I'll never change. That I'll always be an innocent child. She's obviously delusional."

"I wouldn't call your mother delusional, per se, but she _is_ incorrect in her assumption."

"You try telling her that. She just yells at me whenever I try to explain to her that I've changed."

"She just may not like to see you change. Mothers tend to cling on to their children's younger days. To her, you'll always be her little girl."

"I'm aware of that, but she needs to respect me and my decisions."

"Are you doing drugs, Dana?"

"E-Excuse me?"

"Drugs. You know, marijuana, tobacco, cocaine, heroin, methamphetamines. Stuff like that."

"Uh... no?"

"Are you sure about that?" She paused.

"Fine. I've smoked a little weed before, okay? Only once. It had no effect on me, so there's no point... And I've had a cigarette or two before. But that's it, I swear. None of that other shit." Dr. Park smiled.

"I appreciate your honesty, Dana. I believe we're finished for the day. I'll see you next week, alright?"

"Sure. Fine. Whatever." Scully stood up and exited the room.

Dr. Park closed her notebook and rose from her seated position, watching the door close behind Scully.

"I wonder..."

* * *

 **Thanks for reading! More to come soon! Please feel free to drop me a review. I'd love to hear your thoughts! :)**


	2. Children with Sharp Sides

**Hi again! Sorry for such a long break between chapters, but here I am! Better late than never, right? Quick disclaimer - anything in italics is written as internal dialogue and will be for the entire duration of this story. Happy reading!**

* * *

Brennan and Dr. Park sat in silence. She found herself staring at the floor as Dr. Park studied her every move. Though she was used to people staring at her, Brennan found herself feeling almost violated by the behavior her therapist was exhibiting.

Brennan's thoughts circled endlessly in her mind; and they were starting to drown her just as they always did.

 _Why do I always give in? How many therapists do I have to go through for them to realize that therapy doesn't work with me? I don't understand why they're always so confident that this will work when it never has..._

She sighed. With that, Dr. Park gave in and ended the session 15 minutes early.

"We're just about done here. You may go. See you next week, Temperance." Brennan threw on a fake smile and left the room, leaving Dr. Park displeased and a little embarrassed about the result of their first session.

Brennan walked out of the the building and into the car, where her foster mother, Brooke, was waiting for her. As Brennan closed the car door, Brooke closed the book she was reading and set it on the console.

"How's your new therapist? Dr. Park, right?" She put the keys in the ignition and started the car.

"Yeah. She's okay. I don't know if I like her yet..." Brennan looked out the window.

"Sweetie," Brennan cringed at the use of a nickname, "we've gone through 4 therapists now. What else are we going to do?"

"I don't know, Brooke. Therapy doesn't solve everything, nor does it work for all people."

"I refuse to believe that. You just have to find the right therapist!" Brennan sighed, not wanting to clash over yet another thing. She and Brooke already had a large amount of things they disagreed on; and this was definitely one of them.

 _When will it end?_

* * *

"Dana, that's enough!" Maggie Scully stood in her daughter's doorway, distraught. Scully stood up from her position on the floor.

"Maybe I'm not the only problem here, mom! What if, god forbid, _you_ have something to do with this?!"

"I'VE HAD ENOUGH!" Scully wouldn't back down this time.

"Why is it that _every time_ I try to explain something you you, you don't even let me get a word in! Is it because I'm pointing out the flaws in your parenting? Is that what it is? Or, maybe, is it the fact that I'm a constant reminder of your parenting failure? I can't take this shit anymore. I'm done." She threw herself back on the floor and began tossing clothes in a bag.

"Where in the _hell_ do you think you're going?" Maggie was about to charge at her daughter, but resisted.

"Anywhere but here!" Scully zipped up her bag, grabbed her keychain, and headed to the doorway which was currently blocked by her mother.

"Mom, get out of my way!" After trying to maneuver herself around her mother without luck, she gave up and pushed her way through. Stomping down the hall, the front door slammed behind her and off she went, seething with rage.

Her mother stood at the door teary eyed, watching in horror as her daughter backed out of the driveway and raced down the street.

 **\- 3 hours earlier -**

Scully walked out of the office building and out to the parking lot. She slid into the passenger seat of their family station wagon and fastened her seat belt.

"Did therapy go well?" Scully slowly turned her head toward her mother.

"It's therapy, mom. What do you expect? A bed of roses?"

"I just asked you a question, Dana."

"And I gave you an answer." Maggie put the car in park and turned to Scully.

"What's wrong? There's obviously something bothering you. I want to help, Dana."

"I don't wanna talk to you about it."

"Dana, please. I just want to help you."

"I don't believe you." She got out of the car and went into the house.

"Dana, please!" Maggie was going to follow her daughter, but stopped herself.

 _Why do I even bother?_

* * *

Scully walked down a familiar dirt path, staring into the distance where the sun was beginning to set.

 _I haven't been here in a long time._

She walked towards the lone structure that stood in a desolate area of what used to be a flourishing forest. The trees had since died and were cut down. Only a few remained. Her hand wrapped around the rusted metal of a chain-link swing and she sat down.

 _I can't believe this is still standing._

The breeze began to rock her back and forth on the swing, calming her down as time passed. Scully rarely had outbursts like the one that she had just 15 minutes prior; but when she did, she would come here. It did wonders for her. This spot had a lot of meaning to Scully, but only she and one other person knew what that meaning was.

The entire town knew what happened here, though. It had been almost 3 years now. Sophia Gibson. 14 years old. She was Scully's best and only friend.

"I miss you, Soph." She looked out to the large oak tree to her right. A stained rope swung back and forth with the breeze.

"I miss you every day."

* * *

Open books lay scattered across a neutral bedspread as classical music played. This was how Brennan liked it. Studying to relieve her stress.

"Temperance?"

"What?"

"May I come in?" She sighed.

"Sure." The door opened to reveal Brooke standing in the doorway.

"Is there something you need, Brooke?" She didn't look up from her book.

"Dinner's ready." Brennan set her book down.

"Great, thanks. Is that all?" Brooke sighed and stepped into the room.

"Are you okay?"

"Why do you care all of a sudden?"

"I've always cared about you, Temperance. Don't you know that?"

"I guess." Brennan got up and walked past Brooke.

 _I'm not doing this right now._

Brennan grabbed a plate and some silverware. She walked over to the table and scooped some corn, spaghetti, and on to her plate and grabbed a roll for a late night snack. She headed back upstairs to set her plate down when Brooke exited her room. She stood in her doorway for a moment, wondering what her foster mother was doing in her room. then set her plate down. Her eyes scanned the room, seeing if anything was misplaced. Once she found it, Brennan went back downstairs.

"What were you doing in my room?"

"Nothing, Temperance."

"Well, that's a lie. You moved my shoebox to the opposite side of my window seat." Brooke looked shocked.

"You seriously thought I wouldn't notice that? Wow, Brooke. What were you trying to find? Condoms? Drugs? What?"

"I wasn't looking for anything. I promise."

"I don't believe you. Not for a second." She walked over to the fridge to grab a water bottle.

"That is a serious invasion of privacy. I can't believe this." And with that, she returned to her room and locked the door.

 _This is so fucked up. We have boundaries for a reason, goddammit!_

She took a deep breath.

 _It's not worth it. She's not worth your time. Breathe. Study. Eat._

Brennan sat down on her bed and grabbed her plate and book. She was taking the high road. Being rational is always the best way to handle a situation.

As soon as she finished her meal, Brennan closed all of her books and got ready for bed. She contemplated leaving her plate in her room until tomorrow morning, but decided against it. Taking the trek downstairs was easier now that everyone in the house was asleep. Upon returning to her room, she flopped down on to her bed and stared at the ceiling, then looked down at her legs. Her thumb touched the moderately noticeable lines that took up residence there.

 _I miss this._

* * *

 **Thanks for reading! I hope this chapter was worth the long wait. I'll try to update quicker next time. Please leave me a review and let me know how you liked it! :)**


	3. Secrets to Keep

**Yay for quick updates! This is my longest chapter yet, so I hope it's enjoyable. It's only about Brennan, but there are Scully references thrown in here and there. Enjoy!**

* * *

Brennan sat in class, listening to her history teacher chat away about anything but the chapter they were supposed to be quizzed on next Thursday and her mind began to drift.

 _I really don't wanna go to therapy tonight. Ugh, god, I hate that place. Someone save me._

She looked at the clock. 10:18. Class ended in 12 minutes and they hadn't learned anything.

 _Oh come on, somebody please interrupt her and get her back on track. Don't make me do it myself._

Finally, the teacher realized how much she had been talking about herself and her life rather than the Civil War and began to assign the homework at 10:25. Reading the entire chapter and writing 15 pages of notes. There was a lot of moaning.

 _What a wonderful day in AP US History._

She rolled her eyes, though she was grateful to have already started reading the chapter.

 _It's not like this is a new thing. I don't know why anyone's surprised. If anything, we should all be used to this by now._

The bell dinged, signaling the start of passing time. Students fled the classroom and flooded the halls, creating traffic jams at each intersection.

 _This is gonna be a long day._

* * *

Her lunch hour came very slowly and passed by very fast. Regardless, she was happy to have a little time to herself. She grabbed her lunch out of her locker and went to the cafeteria. She usually sat in the very back at the last table on the right. Brennan brought a similar lunch every day: healthy and light. Today's lunch consisted of a lot of fruit. Her own fruit salad - which consisted of watermelon, apple slices, pineapple chunks, orange slices, and a hint of lemon juice with a light coating of sugar to keep the apples from browning - water, some grapes, and dark chocolate for good measure. She popped open the container that held her salad and grabbed a fork. The large piece of watermelon she got hold of tasted sweet and refreshing on her tongue.

 _I wonder what it's like to sit with a group of friends... It must get annoying after a while. I can't imagine talking about myself to a bunch of people for a half an hour straight._

She popped a grape into her mouth.

 _It must be nice to have a decent conversation with one person, though. But I doubt that anyone would want to spend their lunch with me of all people._ _Now that would be ridiculous._

She looked at the full cafeteria and sighed. But something caught her eye. Bright red hair. Another girl who sat by herself. She likely didn't appreciate the presence of others, just as Brennan didn't. Her bright hair was styled in a short bob that came up to what Brennan estimated to be just below her ears and was slightly curled at the edges. Though, Brennan only saw the back of her head. The black clothing she wore accentuated the brightness of the shade of red her hair was.

 _Wow, now that's a bright color. Pretty, though._

It was almost as if the girl heard Brennan's thoughts. She whipped around and stared at Brennan. Brennan looked away immediately and focused on her fruit salad.

 _Awkward..._

She cautiously looked up. The girl had turned back around. Brennan turned to the clock situated behind her table. It was almost time for fourth period. She sighed as she packed up her lunch.

 _I wish lunch was longer. I need more time to myself in the day._

* * *

The last bell of the day finally rang at 2:15 and Brennan was relieved to be released from hell. But that also meant that she had therapy in 2 hours; and she was not looking forward to that. For now, though, she would go home and do as much homework as she could before 3:30.

"Hey honey, how was school?"

"Fine."

"Just fine?"

"Is that not a satisfactory answer? What else did you expect, Brooke?"

"Sorry I asked..."

The rest of the ride home was a bit awkward, as Brooke only talked about herself the whole time. Thankfully, they lived fairly close to the school, so the ride home never lasted very long.

As soon as she could, Brennan got out of the car and ran up to her room. Her textbooks were removed from her bag and thrown on to her bed as she began to make a dent in her massive amount of homework.

Time must have passed by very quickly, because she heard Brooke's voice call up to her room.

"Temperance! Time to go!" She sighed and looked at her bedside clock. 3:45. They would almost be late if they didn't leave right now.

 _Please save me from this hell._

* * *

"Temperance Brennan. Go on back." There was a different, very unamused receptionist working today.

 _She seems happy to be here. Not._

Brennan walked through the double doors and into the hall where several offices were located. She turned left and found the fifth door on the right.

 **Dr. Amelia Park**

 **Psy.D**

Brennan leaned against the wall waiting for Dr. Park to open the door. She was early, so she wasn't expecting the door to open for a while. Surprisingly, though, the door opened very shortly after she arrived. A very short girl with bright red hair made her way out of the office. When she noticed Brennan standing there, she gave her a death stare that said 'what the hell are you looking at?' It caught Brennan off-guard.

 _I guess dynamite really does come in small packages..._

"See you next week, Dana." Dr. Park interrupted her thought before she could finish it.

"Oh, hello Temperance. You're early. Please, come in." Brennan smiled and ducked into the room.

"Let's just get right into it." She closed the door and sat across from Brennan.

"I'd like you to explain your foster family situation.

"Which one?"

"Whichever you'd prefer."

"Well, my current foster parents and I - specifically Brooke - aren't on the best terms. She's been in my room several times, each time she seems to be looking for something. The first time I noticed it was last night, but I know it's happened before. I remember noticing that things were in a different place than they were before I walked out of my room, but I brushed it off each time."

"I have to admit, that is a little strange. Why do you think she's searching through your belongings?"

"I don't know... Maybe she doesn't trust me anymore? Though, I'm not sure she ever did."

"What do you mean by that?"

"I just mean that we never established a very.. I don't know, sound relationship?"

"Oh, I see. Have you thought of asking her why she's doing this?"

"I confronted her about it last night, but she denied even going into my room. She was in my room, though. She knocked on my door to tell me that dinner was ready and then just kind of stepped into the room. I got annoyed with her sudden curiosity in my activities and went downstairs. I presume that's when she began looking through my shoebox."

"Shoebox?"

"Oh, right. Sorry. I have a shoebox that I keep some of my belongings in. Pictures, my journal, magazines, notes to me, stuff like that."

"Did you look through the shoebox after you noticed it was in a different spot?"

"Now that I think about it, no." Brennan looked very nervous now.

"Is there something in the shoebox that you don't want her to know about?"

"I, uh... I guess? Just pictures of my old foster parents." It wasn't entirely a lie. She did have pictures of the Grants in her box. But that wasn't the only thing she kept there. Her blades. They were in a small jewelry box that used to hold a necklace that was given to her by her mother. Even though she hadn't touched them in a year and a half, she liked knowing they were there. It reduced the urge to use them.

"Would you like to talk about them? Your first foster family, I mean."

"I'd prefer not to."

"That's fine." The room was very quiet. The hum of other voices could be heard through the walls.

"I have to ask you something. It's okay if you don't want to do it, but I think it might be a good idea." Brennan was curious.

"What's your idea?"

"Well, the girl who just walked out of my office. Her name is Dana. Dana Scully. I think you two should meet. You'd like her. She's definitely a wild one, but I'm sure she just uses that as a protective barrier."

"And why would I do that?" She wouldn't admit it out loud, but Brennan secretly liked the idea. She hadn't talked to someone other than a therapist in a very long time.

"Because you two are in a similar situation-"

"So she's been in the foster system?" She seemed a little offended.

"I didn't say that... I'm saying that you two have some similarities."

"Like what?"

"Well..."

"Anger?"

"Do you want my honest answer?"

"I do."

"Then yes, you two have that in common. When you're agitated, both of you are silent and will either refuse to talk about whatever it is that's bothering you or lie about it before giving an honest answer." Brennan was silent.

"Please, I'm just asking you to consider it. You may leave after I get an answer." Brennan pondered for a moment.

"Fine. I'll consider it."

"Thank you. I'll see you soon, Temperance."

She smiled and got up from the chair.

 _Oh god, why did I say all of that... Fuck me._

She walked out to the waiting room where Brooke was flipping through a magazine.

"Oh, back so soon?"

"It's been an hour, Brooke."

"Oh my, it has! Well then, let's go home. I'm sure Jeff is cooking dinner as we speak!" Brooke tried to put her arm around Brennan, but Brennan pulled away.

 _Not today and not ever, Brooke._


End file.
